Candlehead, Come Home!
by Captain Alaska
Summary: We all know Candlehead is a ditz and sometimes a klutz. But what we didn't know was how sensitive she is. How will Candlehead react when she accidentally destroys Taffyta's Birthday cake and covers Taffyta with the cake? Will she blow it off like she normally does when someone calls her a ditz and a klutz, or will she do something unexpected as a result? K for slight language
1. Chapter 1

**Candlehead, Come Home!**

_I got this idea after watching the tear-jerker episode of 'The Real Ghostbusters.' This is a sad story, but don't worry, no sacrifices, no death. Just sadness by being yelled at._

* * *

"Surprise! Happy Birthday Taffyta!" All the Sugar Rush racers exclaimed to the strawberry lollipop racer. The 14 racers that were giving the surprise party were hiding in the bushes around Lemonade lake, waiting for the birthday girl.

"HOLY SEGA!" Taffyta cheered, "I-I don't know what to say," Taffyta held her mouth with her white gloved hand.

"You don't have to say anything. Just enjoy it Strawberry Shortcake!" Vanellope slapped her hand on Taffyta's back. The birthday girl smiled and eagerly headed to the main part of the party: The Presents.

"Hey, Happy Birthday Taff!" Rancis called as he danced with Vanellope to 'Jump' by Van Halen.

"Thanks Rancis!" Taffyta replied. She tore apart her presents like a Cheetah would to a gazelle carcass. "*GASP!* An autographed Dale Earnhardt hat?!" She exclaimed and nearly fainted. Once she gathered coherent thoughts, she turned to the person who gave her the present, "thank you so much Crumbelina!" Taffyta hugged the posh racer.

"No problem, I knew you needed something else for your Dale Earnhardt collection," Crumbelina smiled.

"And this one is from me!" Gloyd kissed his girlfriend on the cheek.

"Wow, a new helmet and goggles? Thanks Gloydie, I love them," Taffyta kissed him back.

"I designed and made them myself," Gloyd added to get a little more sugar.

"Then I love them even more now," Taffyta hugged. After all the presents were opened, Vanellope turned off the music and pointed to a clearing.

"And now, introducing the cake!" She declared. Taffyta turned to see Candlehead wheeling in a _huge_ ten foot tall three layer Strawberry frosting cake.

"Wow, did you make that Candles?" Taffyta asked in disbelief.

"I sure did Taffyta, it took me all day to bake my MASTERPIECE!" Candlehead admired her work.

"Well, let's light this sucker!" Swizzle declared and handed Candlehead a lighter. She left for a brief moment to get a ladder and candles.

"Alright, here we go!" Candlehead said as she climbed up the ladder.

"Hey, aren't you afraid of heights Candlehead?" Minty pointed out. The Birthday themed racer froze and looked down.

"Oh Sega! I am!" Candlehead freaked and started to shake.

"Hold on, I'm coming up Candlehead!" Vanellope said to save her friend. However, Candlehead's shaking caused the ladder to slide slightly. The motion of the ladder sliding off to the side put more weight on the cake and knocked it over.

"HEAD'S UP!" Rancis yelled and caught Vanellope who fell. In one swift motion that seemed to last an eternity, the cake fell completely over, right on top of Taffyta.

"Is everyone okay?" Sticky asked as she pulled racers off the ground that were covered in cake frosting. Gloyd went over with a towel to clean up Taffyta, but found a very pissed off girlfriend instead. To this day, Gloyd Orangeboar believed Taffyta's eyes were glowing red with hatred and anger.

"Oh, Taffyta, I'm so sorry! I'm such a klutz!" Candlehead apologized. As she approached Taffyta, the birthday girl stuck her arms out and shoved Candlehead to the ground. "OW!" What was that for?" Candlehead asked as some tears welled up in her eyes from being pushed onto the ground. Everyone was silent as Taffyta wiped the frosting off her face and glared at the girl on the ground.

"Get out of here," was all Taffyta said with so much anger in her voice.

"W-what do you mean?" Candlehead asked, growing more afraid each second.

"I want you to get the hell out right now!" Taffyta yelled. More tears welled up in Candlehead's green eyes.

"W-where do you want me to go?" Candlehead asked as she blinked a few tears out of her eyses.

"I DON'T CARE!" Taffyta yelled as loud as she could, "I don't care where you go, I don't care that you're a klutz and a ditz, and I DON'T CARE THAT WE'RE FRIENDS! GET OUT OF MY LIFE YOU DUMB KLUTZ!" Taffyta unloaded all her hatred on poor Candlehead. All eyes were wide at how much hatred Taffyta just let out. They all turned to Candlehead who was trying her best to fight back tears, but was failing. Then, without making even a whimper, she bolted upright and ran-away, covering her eyes.

"That was a little harsh," Gloyd said to his girlfriend.

* * *

**(With Candlehead)**

The sad birthday themed racer ran into her giant cupcake house and collapsed onto her bed, crying her eyes out. "I-I-I-I don't mean to be a klutz!" She wailed and kicked her feet, "I just w-want to be accepted!" She cried out and buried her face into her pillow. After about an hour of crying her eyes out, Candlehead flopped over with red puffy eyes and looked around her room. Adoring the walls were pictured of herself and her friends, even Taffyta. However, not with anger, but sadness and pain, Candlehead took all the pictures of her and Taffyta down and hid them under her bed. "*Sniff* w-well, if no one wants me here, I better just leave so the game won't b-be destroyed," she sniffled to herself. Candlehead blew the candle out on her hat, took it off and set it on top of her trashcan in her bathroom. Carefully and slowly, she untied her pigtails, letting her hair fall down all the way. "I knew th*sniff*ere was a good reason for this," Candlehead said to herself and pulled out a tube of brunette hair dye. The coolness of the gel made her cry even harder as it hit her palm and she rubbed it into her hair. A good amount of rubbing later, the minty green of her old hair was no longer visible beneath the dark brown of the dye. After washing her hands, she took out special eye drops and changed her eye color to brown as well. "*Sniff* who is Candlehead? My name is Elana, Elana Dech," she cried to her reflection in the mirror. The next thing Candlehead did was change her skirt to a pair of blue jeans. She kept her jacket so she could stay warm, wherever she ended up. But, as she wrote down a note for her 'friends' to read, Candlehead looked down to see the Sugar Rush logo stitched onto her jacket. Without words, she reached down and ripped off the stitching. As she walked away from the only life she knew, the patch slowly fell to the ground.

"Hey Miss, are you alright there?" A voice asked Candlehead as she walked trough Game Central Station. She cursed herself for not stopping her crying, but she turned around to face whoever called out to her.

"Uh yeah, why do you ask Tapper?" She questioned.

"Well, you look a little down. Why don't you come back to my game and we can talk about it, by the way, who are you?" He asked her.

"Candleh-" she started but bit her lip, "Elana, Dech, Elana Dech" she smiled and forced some more tears back.

"Nice name, but do you have a game?" Tapper asked.

"I'd rather not talk about it," Candlehead quickly replied.

"I could use some help in my pub, would you like a job and a place to sleep?" Tapper offered.

"S-sure, that would be nice," Candlehead replied as she took one last look at Sugar Rush.

* * *

**(Back in Sugar Rush)**

"Candlehead, are you okay in there?" Jubileena asked as she knocked on Candlehead's door. When she got no answer, Jubileena turned to Swizzle.

"I got this Jubee," Swizzle assured her as he pulled out a paperclip and picked the lock. "Oh, it was open the whole time," he rubbed the back of his head as the door opened ajar. The two entered Candlehead's house and gasped at what they found.

"Oh no," Jubileena covered her mouth as she found Candlehead's beloved Candlehat in the trash.

"Check this out Jubee," Swizzle exclaimed as he found Candlehead's pigtails cut off and the empty tube of hair dye.

"And look at this," Jubileena said quietly as she found Candlehead's note.

_Dear Friends, I'm sorry for everything I have screwed up in the past. I'm sorry for being stupid and making everyone's life miserable. And I'm sorry for ruining Taffyta's Birthday. I'm leaving so everyone can have a better life without me since all I do is mess things up. Please don't waste your time looking for me, by the time you read this, I'll already be gone. -Signed, Candleklutz._

"She can't be serious!" Jubileena exclaimed.

"Jubee, she's really serious about this," Swizzle said, "look what I found on the floor," he retorted. He held up the Sugar Rush logo patch from Candlehead's jacket.

**End Chapter 1**

* * *

So, how is it? Is it good, or does it suck like a straw?


	2. Go Find Our Friend

**Candlehead, Come Home! Chapter 2: "Get our Friend back"**

_HOLY SHIT! FOURTEEN reviews on the first bloody chapter? I can't believe that. I really didn't think this would be a good enough story for that. Just don't expect it to be a very long story. Maybe three or four chapters. And a huge shout-out Thank you to TURBOTASTIC for giving me Candlehead's alias. _

* * *

**(At Tapper's.)**

"So, what do you need me for Tapper?" the masquerading Candlehead questioned after Tapper gave her an apron. He was busy making a label for her name tag while she sat at the bar, sadly drumming her fingers on the wooden top as she couldn't get the image of Taffyta yelling at her out of her head.

"Aha, here we go Ms. Dech," Tapper smiled as he gave Candlehead her name tag. It read the full name she had given him, _Elana Dech._

"Thank you Mr. Tapper," the now brown haired waitress said.

"Well, I need help with the Friday and Saturday after hours rush mainly," Tapper explained whilst wiping down the top of the bar, "other than that during the day, you can stay in the back and organize the stock room and to bring crates of Root Beer to me during the game play. If you need help while no one is playing the game, I can come back there. Also, during the after hours rush, you will be taking orders, serving food and cleaning the tables. I'll start you off at $10 an hour plus tips you make," Tapper smiled from behind his big black mustache. Candlehead smiled as she put on her name tag.

"Can I start now?" she begged. The wisdom-filled bar-tender smiled at Candlehead's enthusiasm and patted her wrist.

"Sure, in fact, those two over there are some of my best customers, treat them well," Tapper instructed her. Candlehead breathed in a sigh of anticipation and immediately forgot all about Sugar Rush and what happened between her and Taffyta. She strolled on over to where Ken and Ryu were sitting at one of the booths chatting about their day. Candlehead took in another breath while she whipped out her notepad and pin from her apron pocket.

"Welcome to Tapper's, may I take your order?" 'Elana' asked politely. The two Street Fighter characters ceased their conversation to see who was talking to them. They raised their eyebrows slowly in confusion, for over 20 years, they've _never_ been served by anyone other than Tapper.

"Uh, who are you,?" Ryu asked.

"Where's Tapper?" Ken questioned and folded his hands over on top of the table. Still feeling a tad nervous, 'Elana' gulped slightly and lowered her pad and pen.

"My name is Elana Dech and I'm Tapper's new hire," Candlehead explained, "my game was unplugged and I am the only surviving member," she lied, "Tapper wanted after-hours help and I needed a job," she explained. Candlehead tensed up, hoping that Ken and Ryu would buy her story. Her hand gained a mind of its own and went to adjust her candle hat, but she remembered she threw it away, so she instead smoothed out her brunette hair.

"What game was that Elana?" Ryu cocked his eyebrow. The brown eyed racer's breath was sucked from her like a vacuum. '_Oh crap, I didn't think this far,'_ she thought to herself. She could feel Ken and Ryu's eyes boring deep into her, and it made her all the more nervous.

"It was back in the early 90s and I don't like to talk about it very much," the waitress so cleverly lied. If there was one thing Candlehead could do better than anyone was lie and use her innocent personality to her advantage, with the exception of using it on Vanellope, Rancis, Swizzle and Jubileena.

"Okay, nice to meet you Elana," Ken smiled, "I'm Ken and this is Ryu, and we're from Street Fighter II," he explained.

"Pleased to meet you," Candlehead breathed a sigh of relief, "so, what can I get for you?" she asked and raised up the notepad and pen. The two fighters traced their fingers over the menus, thinking of what they want.

"I'll have the Philly Cheesesteak with fries and a large Root Beer please," Ken ordered. Candlehead quickly scribbled down the order and turned her gaze towards Ryu.

"Eh, I'll have the Double Bacon Cheeseburger with fries, extra onions and a large Root Beer please," Ryu ordered. Candlehead scribbled down the second order and then took the menus.

"Thank you boys, it should be about 20 minutes," she informed them and walked off to give Tapper the ticket.

"Nice girl," Ken commented.

"Efficient too," Ryu added. The two then resumed their conversation from before they ordered their food.

* * *

**(Back in Sugar Rush)**

"WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF!?" Jubileena yelled at the now clean Taffyta. The cheery Cherry racer and her boyfriend had gathered everyone up at Candlehead's house to reveal the shocking evidence of what had taken place. The strawberry lollipop racer backed away while everyone else glared at her and marched toward her.

"H-hey!" Taffyta attempted to defend herself, "I-I-I didn't know she would run away! She usually mopes for a few hours before forgetting what happened!" Taffyta pointed out. Vanellope growled, glitched over to the racer that was 'on trial' and picked her up by the scruff of her pink jacket.

"You forced one of our closest friends to leave our game! What is the matter with you Taffyta?" Vanellope demanded and shook Taffyta around like a rag-doll, "she helped you torture me for 15 years; why would you do that to her?" the President growled. Meanwhile, Rancis was getting turned on by Vanellope's strong personality.

"Wow, Tobikomi knows how to program the perfect girl," he contained himself. Taffyta sighed and removed Vanellope's hands from her jacket.

"Look, how would _you_ react if some idiot knocked over your birthday cake all over you?" Taffyta asked.

"I sure as heck wouldn't tell her to get out of our lives!" Adorabeezle shouted. Suddenly, just about every racer crowded Taffyta, shouting their own thoughts at the racer.

"Would you like _us_ to shout at you to leave the game if you made a mistake?!" Minty yelled.

"Taffy, you crossed the line," Gloyd shook his head in disappointment. Finally, Taffyta had had enough of the shouting and shouted herself.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO?!" She asked everyone. The room fell silent and Swizzle came forward with Candlehead's hat.

"Get our friend back," he told her and handed over the candle hat. Taffyta took the hat and looked up at the other racers.

"Okay, and what if she refuses to come back?" Taffyta asked, "I can ask her all I want, but what will you do if she won't come back?" she pointed out. Vanellope stepped forward again and leaned into Taffyta's face.

"Oh, she'll come back with you because if she doesn't, I _will_ tear apart your racing ability code until you are nothing but a regular citizen; we'll just have to create another racer," Vanellope said.

"Is that a threat I hear, other than the over-abuse of power?" Taffyta questioned. Vanellope smacked Taffyta across the face, surprising everyone.

"It's a promise, now **GO**," Vanellope growled and showed Taffyta the door. The racer took one last look at all the racers who still glared at her.

"Candlehead'll be back soon, I promise," Taffyta swore and hopped into her Pink Lightning. Rancis grabbed ahold of Vanellope's hand as she watched her rival drive away.

"Do you think Taffyta will succeed Nelly?" The Reese's themed Britain asked. Vanellope sighed and turned to her boyfriend.

"I hope so Flugs, Candlehead may be a bit dim, but she's still one of the nicest racers in the game," Vanellope replied, looking at a picture of Candlehead and her best friends in the trash can.

* * *

**(Back at Tapper's)**

"Alright, you can knock off for the night Elana, nice job," Tapper smiled as he closed up the bar. Candlehead smiled at the busy night and clocked off.

"Wow, I got $56 in tips tonight!" Candlehead exclaimed after counting her tips.

"Congrats, you earned it Elana, you handle a rush very well," Tapper said while stretching. "By the way, do you have a place to stay?" he asked. Candlehead froze, _another_ phase of her plan she forgot.

"Um no actually, I was thinking of staying in Beachside racers or the NASCAR game," she replied.

"Oh don't be silly Elana, I sleep down here in the storage room, but there is an old apartment upstairs that you can stay in. It has a bathroom with a shower; you can take one the spare TVs down here up there," Tapper offered.

"Thank you so much Mr. Tapper!" Candlehead squealed and took one of the numerous flat screen TVs from the wall and dashed upstairs.

"Nice kid," Tapper said as he cleaned the mugs.

**End Chapter 2**

* * *

_The hunt is on to find Candlehead! Please __review a lot again! Also this is NOT going to turn into a Tapper/Candlehead romance. Tapper is treating her like a daughter or like the daughter of a close friend._


	3. More than a Handyman

**Candlehead, Come Home! Chapter 3: More than a Handyman**

_Did I ever mention how FREAKIN' awesome you guys are? I mean 26 reviews in TWO chapters? Honestly, this was a little fun reboot of an old episode of 'The Real Ghostbusters.' But I am glad it is getting a posimitive response lol. So again, it will NOT be that long of a story._

* * *

**(Game Central Station)**

Taffyta's kart came to a screeching halt in the little station in front of the gate of Sugar Rush. Feeling sick to her stomach for not only being forced into finding Candlehead, but finally realizing what she had said to her friend, Taffyta wanted to throw up. She put her white gloved hand over her blue eyes and rubbed them vigorously until she saw blurs. "Let's do this," Taffyta said to herself and trudged along inside Game Central Station. Her pink and white boots scraped loudly on the metallic floor, only further confirming her saddened and sickened mood. "Where should I start? Maybe Fix-It Felix Jr.?" The lollipop racer questioned herself. Having no leads and no idea where Candlehead could have runaway to, Taffyta decided to check on the one place that Vanellope liked to visit since everyone in Sugar Rush knew the characters in this particular game than any other. She slowly and cautiously entered the retro 8-bit game, crossing her fingers that she would be one and done with her search.

"Hello there young lady, you're from Sugar Rush aren't you?" Felix happily welcomed the racer. The racer sighed sadly and waved hello to the hero of the game. Felix read her body language like an instruction manual and wanted to ask her what was wrong. "Is something the matter there Miss uh," Felix started but realized that he didn't know her name.

"Taffyta Muttonfudge Mr. Felix, but please, just call me Taffyta," the little girl replied sadly and sat down on a bench. The carpenter sat down next to her to help cajole her into telling him what was the matter.

"Okay then Taffyta," Felix started and took off his hat to be a gentleman, "what's eating you? I haven't seen anyone this down since Mr. Litwak got the flu not too long ago," Felix put his elbows on his knees. Taffyta took out a lollipop to suck on to help her think, but she only tossed it away, as if it were a cigarette that a smoker denied.

"Well, today, is my birthday, but after what I did to my best friend, today should be my Death-day," she began to explain. Felix gasped slightly at such a grim phrase was spoken from such a young girl.

"Why is that Taffyta? Did you accidentally hurt someone?" Felix asked. A deep breath followed by a sigh escaped from Taffyta's lips, giving Felix a good indication that he had hit the nail on the head. Tears threatened to burst from Taffyta's bright blue eyes as she was forced to remember the awful things she had shouted at Candlehead.

"In a way, _yes_," she whined out and covered her eyes. The gloved hand of Felix immediately grabbed a hankie from his back pocket and soaked up the watery mascara running down Taffyta's rosy cheeks. "I yelled at my best friend of nearly two decades for being herself," Taffyta explained.

"And what exactly did Candlehead do Taffyta?" Felix rubbed the girls' back. A sniffle, followed by another whine escaped past Taffyta's lips. She wanted this to be just a bad dream. A dream she could be laughing about with Candlehead over a cup of hot cocoa the next morning. But Taffyta had remembered that dreams cannot hurt someone, and she was hurting more than she could ever recall.

"She made me this ten foot tall birthday cake, and as she was lighting the candles, she accidentally knocked it over and covered me with frosting. I just lost it and started yelling at her without thinking. Then she picked herself up and ran away to her house," Taffyta finished as she continuously dried her eyes. Felix understood that Taffyta did feel horrible for her actions, but the question that kept picking at his subconscious was, _'Then why are you here, and not apologizing to your friend?'_

"Is there any reason why you're here and not with your friend apologizing and making up?" Felix questioned as Taffyta handed back his hankie.

"Sh-she ran away to some o-other game," Taffyta slightly hiccuped from her sniffling, "and she dyed her hair, changed her name and left behind any trace of her old life," Taffyta replied, "and I'm trying to find her because she doesn't know how much our game misses her," Taffyta finished her story. Being the ever so kind man he was, Felix wrapped his arms around Taffyta in a warming, friendly hug.

"I know you feel bad for your mistake Taffyta, but if she really is your friend like you said, she'll forgive you, and since you're also out looking for her, I can't see any reason why she would not go back home," Felix smiled. The pink racer looked up at the handyman and gave a weak, but effective smile.

"Thanks Mr. Felix, I needed to hear that," she wiped her eyes.

"Glad to help young lady," Felix helped her up, "and if I were you, I would check other racing games since she is a racer herself," Felix suggested. Taffyta smiled brightly again and waved good-bye to continue her search.

"Thank you Mr. Felix, I owe you big time!" She called out as she got back into the tram, a new feeling of determination flowing through her body.

"Always happy to help!" Felix called back.

"Please be okay Candlehead," Taffyta prayed as she laced her fingers across her phone's screen at a picture of herself and Candlehead at Vanellope's birthday party.

**End Chapter 3**

* * *

_Yeah, it's not that long, but Taffyta comes to a turning point and wants to find Candlehead. Will she succeed, or will Candlehead remain Elana forever? Find out in Chapter 4: The Hunt is on._


	4. The Hunt, is on

**Candlehead, Come Home! Chapter 4: The Hunt, is on**

_I'm only going to review to one person this time. Why this particular person you ask? Because they are pissing me the f*** off! _

_Guest: I'm not sure if you are the same one that told me about the friendship thing between Vanellope and Taffyta, but if you are, get ready to be ripped apart kid. I KNOW that Vanellope and Taffyta are good friends now. But they can be rivals on track! Example: Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt in the 1990's NASCAR Era were close friends off track and rivals on track. They weren't in a hatred rivalry, but a fun and competitive rivalry, like the one I put Vanellope and Taffyta in. Secondly, I KNOW Taffyta wears sneakers, but in MY stories, all the drivers wear RACING BOOTS. That's why it's called FANfiction. Racing boots are more accurate anyways. Nitpickers like you REALLY piss me off. Discounting people who catch spelling and grammatical mistakes, those are acceptable for the reason that they help me fix errors and make my stories the best that they can be._

* * *

**(Back To Taffyta's start of the hunt)**

The tram came to a stop in the mini-train station of Fix-It Felix Jr.; Taffyta wasted no time in hopping off the train to begin her search. Taking Felix's advice, she scraped her racing boots across the metallic floor as fast as she could as she jogged her way to _NASCAR: Challenge of the Champions._ "Please be here Candles, _please!_" She begged to herself. Dodging past the game characters that were still mingling around the Station. "Excuse me!" Taffyta's voice rang while she zig-zagged around the numerous pairs of legs that blocked her path to the NASCAR game. Upon entering the gate, she inhaled and exhaled multiple times, the jog taking a slight toll on her breathing. She thanked Mod that there was already a monorail awaiting her, cutting her waiting time in half. The monorail roared to life when her foot made a step, causing the lollipop racer to hurry and sit down before the monorail took off at its designated 185 mph.

"_Welcome to NASCAR: Challenge of the Champions, enjoy your visit!"_ Darrell Waltrip's pre-recorded message blared throughout the monorail's speaker system. Taffyta didn't even flinch when the message was broadcasted, for she still had her one and only goal in mind. The clicking and clacking of the wheels on the rails bore into her head, almost as if they were secretly giving her a message. _'You're a bad friend, you're a bad friend,'_ is what Taffyta heard from the sounds of the monorail. All of her friends' angry faces and shouts returned to her mind, forcing her to shut her eyes tight and hold her head.

"S-stop it!" She ordered the shouting. Her blue eyes snapped open as she heard silence. Believing that she had arrived, Taffyta shuffled around in her seat, but she saw a ghost version of Candlehead sitting down in the seat across from her. "C-Candles?" Taffyta asked in disbelief. Ghost Candlehead just stared at her, the dark green eyes peering straight into Taffyta's bright blue eyes, boring into her soul.

_'You're a bad friend Taffyta,'_ Ghost Candlehead exclaimed. Taffyta was hurt slightly, but understood what her 'friend' was trying to say.

"Come on Candles, I didn't mean t-," Taffyta began to reply, but Ghost Candlehead's flame ignited brighter, casting a demanding and horrifying orange glow upon Taffyta's face.

_'IF YOU DIDN'T MEAN IT THEN YOU WOULD NOT HAVE SAID IT 'FRIEND!'_ The ghostly version of Candlehead yelled. Taffyta shrank down in her seat, conflicting emotions eating away at her heart.

"I-I'm sorry!" Taffyta cried out in fear, "i-is there anything I can do to get you to come home?" The pink racer questioned. The ghost floated towards Taffyta and squinted her eyes. Tears began to form.

_'You've already done enough; there's nothing you can do or say that will bring me back,'_ she replied. _'Like I said before, I am not Candlehead anymore, and I never will be,'_ the ghost's Candlehat disappeared, leaving a lonely and sad looking Candlehead. She started to disappear as well.

"Please, come back!" Taffyta begged. Suddenly, a blindingly bright light engulfed the sky and a large man was shaking Taffyta's body.

"WAKE UP!" An elder man's voice reverberated on Taffyta's ear drums. Ever so slowly, her eyes opened up to see a dozen stock-car drivers peering down at her. "Oh thank God you're awake, you've been passed out for nearly 10 minutes," the racer with an STP fire suit said and helped her up.

"W-what happened?" Taffyta asked groggily. A racer wearing a DuPont fire suit stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder.

"We were kinda hoping you would tell us," he explained, "the monorail arrived and you were passed out on the bench with a nasty bump on your head," he finished. Taffyta's gloved hand reached up and touched her forehead. She yelped a little at the searing pain from the dark black bruise on her forehead.

"I think she may have slammed her head on the pole in there," Richard Petty suggested. The rest of the drivers nodded in agreement. "But more importantly, are you okay there?" Richard asked kindly. Taffyta nodded before replying.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," she replied and looked around desperately, "by the way, did you see a girl about my age with an innocent and ditzy personality come in here?" Taffyta asked. The dozen racers looked at each other and shook their heads.

"No ma'am, we haven't seen anybody like that come in here," Cale Yarbourough replied. Taffyta clenched her teeth and grumbled in frustration. Her reaction piqued the curiosity of Dale Earnhardt, whom had been silent while Taffyta had awoken.

"Any reason why someone like that would come here and you'd have to go lookin' for her?" Dale asked. Taffyta licked her lips and turned around to the Seven-Time Champion. It was then, that it hit her. She should've realized that she would have to explain her situation to everyone she asked, though she wished that she wouldn't have to. Taffyta was no longer on a mission for Vanellope, she was on a mission for Candlehead, and having to explain everything to everyone, would jeopardize any time she had.

"To make a long story short sir," Taffyta began, "I need to find her before she's lost forever. I made her leave our game, and I want to find her before she hurts herself and can't regenerate," she explained. Big mistake. The last part of her explanation gave a new thought that she hadn't yet considered. What would happen if Candlehead had gone to Street Fighter II, or Call of Duty, or, Mod Forbid, Hero's Duty? She could get herself killed, and be gone,_ forever._ More salty tears brimmed at her eyelids, forcing her to wipe them away. "I'm sorry I can't stay!" Taffyta exclaimed before running back to the monorail, leaving more questions than answers with the NASCAR drivers.

* * *

**(With Candlehead)**

The ditzy racer turned waitress had happily hooked up her new 39" Toshiba flat screen in the old apartment. She laid down on her bed, kicked her shoes off and turned on the TV. The remote control got a huge workout while Candlehead channel surfed for something decent to watch.

_'Today, in Iraq-'_

_'He's, a, Family, GUUUUUYYY!'_

_'To Infinity, and beyo-'_

_'This week on Diners, Drive-Ins-'_

_'One, Two, Freddy's Coming for you.'_

_'Today at Daytona, Parker Kilgerman flipped over onto,'_ a NASCAR report came onto the screen.

"FINALLY!" Candlehead breathed a sigh of relief and snuggled down to watch NASCAR practice. Her green eyes stayed glued to the TV as NASCAR analysts broke down the wreck that caused a barrel roll in practice for the Daytona 500. She loved watching NASCAR, even though some of her fellow racers, disagreed on whether or not it was a challenging sport. However, despite having a job with a kind boss and NASCAR on the TV, she felt, empty inside. Usually around this time of the day, she and Crumbelina would be painting their nails and talking about the man-stealing girls that took Gloyd and Rancis from them. They would joke about it, but the memory of Taffyta's angered face still haunted Candlehead.

"_We'll be right back to Daytona after these local messages,'_ Kyle Petty's voice broadcasted over the 56th Annual Daytona 500 logo on the screen. Candlehead froze and her hands and feet went numb as the first commercial popped up on the screen. It was a black-and-white picture of her, standing on top of her #7 kart, holding the Sugar Rush Trophy. And more than that, Sarah McLaughlin's '_In The arms of an Angel'_ was playing. Then, over the song, Vanellope's voice was heard.

_"Though you may not know her, Candlehead is one of Sugar Rush's best and kindest racers. But tonight, she ran away from her game after a harsh dispute with a fellow racer. You can help us. If you see her, please tell her how much we miss her and want her back. She is apart of our family, and just want her to be safe. And Candlehead, if you're watching this, please come home, we miss you,"_ Vanellope's voice-over concluded. Another picture of Candlehead appeared on the screen. It was her with all the racers at her birthday party. A caption at the bottom of the screen appeared and read: Please contact KL5-1997 if you see Candlehead. The TV shut off, and the remote was dropped on the bed. Candlehead's hands were covering her mouth as she fought desperately to control her tears. But alas, the tears flowed down her cheeks and she let out a cry.

"I m-miss you guys t-too!" She cried out and looked at a picture of herself and Vanellope.

**End Chapter 4**

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Kinda tugs at your heartstrings doesn't it?


	5. Revelation

**Candlehead, Come Home! Chapter 5: Revelation**

_Guest Reviewer: GO FUCK YOURSELF. I mean it. I don't know if you're trolling or just being a huge dick with a stick up your ass but KNOCK-IT OFF! Maybe if you would open your damn eyes, it was a hallucination of Candlehead that had green eyes BECAUSE that is how Candlehead looked the last time Taffyta (or anyone in Sugar Rush for that matter) saw her! That's why I gave her the dark green eyes you moron. And for the sneakers, I ALWAYS have had the Sugar Rushers wear racing boots rather than their sneakers because I WANT THEM TO! I've been watching NASCAR for nearly 20 years and they use specially designed shoes, though I would prefer them to wear racing boots because they cover more of their leg. If all you're going to do is be a huge fucking dick and point out little inconsistencies that are NOT inconsistencies, then stay the fuck away from my story, ass._

* * *

**(Back with Taffyta)**

She ran. Ran around Game Central Station as fast as her racing boot covered foot could carry her. Desperately checking every game she could think of, each time hoping the next one would be the conclusion of her search. Yet every time she would talk with a different game character, her search had come up empty. And with every negative response, Taffyta's worry kept growing and growing. She only had a handful of games left to check, and she felt like she would just break down crying like a baby right in the middle of the station. The fact that it was almost the time when every game shut down for the night ate at Taffyta's heart. She was too desperate on her search to give up and try again the next day. So, if she had to wake up game characters to find her best friend, so be it. "Come on, please be here!" Taffyta begged as she jogged into the entrance of _Street Fighter II._

"Hi there, what can Zangief do for strawberry smelling little girl?" Zangief asked while he was drinking water. Taffyta stumbled a bit at Zangief's sudden appearance, but she regained her balance and quickly explained the situation.

"I don't have much time so here it, is," Taffyta breathed in and out, "my friend ran away from our game, Sugar Rush, and I need to find her before she could possibly hurt herself, have you seen her?" Taffyta questioned and gave Zangief a picture of Candlehead. The Siberian fighter took the picture in between his thumb and forefinger and rubbed his chin several times.

"Hmm yes, I've seen this girl before, but she didn't come in here, Zangief apologizes," the fighter said and handed back the picture. Taffyta struggled to hold back more tears, but she failed to contain them. Ken and Ryu, whom were practicing, heard the commotion and decided to take five to investigate what was going on.

"Hey, what's wrong young lady?" Ryu politely asked. Ken produced a box of Kleenex and handed the Lollipop girl a tissue to wipe her eyes. Taffyta sniffled and also blew her nose before explaining her problem for the millionth time that night. And after she did, she got the exact same answer as before.

"I'm sorry Ms. Muttonfudge, but no one by that name or fitting that description has come in Street Fighter tonight," Ken replied. Taffyta's heart stopped, knowing that she only had one game left and then her searches would be exhausted. However, a glimmer of hope appeared when Ryu took a closer look at the photo.

"Now wait a second here," he said, "hey Ken, doesn't she look almost like our waitress at Tapper's?" he asked.

"Yeah, now that you mention it, she _does_, but our waitress had brown hair and brown eyes," Ken replied. Taffyta couldn't believe it. Could her search finally be over? Well, it was the best lead she had, and she knew that if she didn't take it, then Candlehead might be gone forever.

"Waitress?" Taffyta asked, "I thought Tapper took care of customers by himself," she questioned. Ryu handed back the picture and stretched a little.

"We thought the same thing," he explained, "but she told us that Tapper wanted some help and he hired her," Ryu concluded. So far, so good. Their story pretty much matched up with Candlehead leaving. The lollipop race felt as if someone had stopped beating her up and started to mend her bruised heart. She was so lost in the possibilities of her good fortune that she failed to notice that Ken and Ryu were trying to get her attention.

"Hey! Don't you want to know her name?" Ken waved his hand in front of her blue eyes. She blinked several times as she was brought back to reality.

"Huh, what? I'm sorry I got a little sidetracked," Taffyta apologized.

"It's fine, but her name was Elana Dech," Ryu explained.

"Elana Dech?" Taffyta questioned. She didn't understand. _'What cockamamy name is Elana Dech?'_ She asked herself. Yet, the more Taffyta thought about it, the more the revelation dawned on her.

"Yeah, weird name, never heard of one-" Ken began to converse, but was interrupted by Taffyta.

"That's an anagram for CANDLEHEAD!" Taffyta shouted and ran out of Street Fighter as if the hounds of Hell were nipping at her racing boots. The two Street Fighters stared at the doorway that Taffyta just exited from and shook their heads.

"Man, those Sugar Rush kids are weird," Ken joked.

* * *

**(Back at Tapper's)**

Taffyta huffed and puffed as she ran with the remaining energy in her body. She would need to stock up on all the lollipops she had back at home to regain her energy. Her feet stomped as she came to a stop in front of Tapper's Saloon doors and entered the empty pub. "Hello, anyone there?" she called. A yelp escaped her lips as Tapper arose from behind the bar so suddenly.

"Sorry, we're closed little girl, come back tomorrow," Tapper apologized as he cleaned his mugs. Taffyta's feet gained a mind of their own and trudge her on over to the bar where she set her arms down.

"Tapper, you don't understand, I need to see my friend," she explained. Tapper ceased cleaning his current mug and set it down with a _clink_ on the bar top.

"You mean Elana?" Tapper questioned.

"Is there anyone else working here?" Taffyta asked, partly being a jerk and partly being serious. Tapper's head shook from side to side and held up his index finger. He disappeared to the staircase in the back. The longer that she was forced to wait, the more antsy Taffyta became. Soon enough however, Tapper came back with a brown haired and brown eyed young woman. The girl gasped and disappeared behind the corner.

"Elana, don't be rude, this young lady just wants to see you," Tapper scolded her. Reluctantly, 'Elana' appeared from around the corner, glaring at Taffyta. "I'll leave you two girls alone," Tapper patted the counter and went to the stock room.

"What do _you_ want?" 'Elana' asked and glared at Taffyta from across the bar.

"Candlehead," Taffyta began but was cut off with the girl slamming her fist on the bar.

"My name is _Elana Dech!_" Candlehead screeched. Taffyta was taken aback and she flinched at Candlehead's ferocity.

"Please, let me talk to you, we miss you," Taffyta begged. Candlehead's eyes narrowed again as she sat up from her seat and stalked on over to Taffyta.

"I'm sure everyone misses me but _you_. Let me guess, Vanellope _made_ you come search for me; you don't give a crap whether or not you find me, as long as you don't get punished," Candlehead said coldly. Tears once again began to brim at Taffyta's eyelids, forcing her to look away and wipe her eyes.

"I am sorry Candlehead," Taffyta blurted.

"I don't believe you Taffyta," Candlehead replied, "there is no taking back what you said to me, and what makes you think I'll accept your apology?" Candlehead demanded.

"Because we've been friends for almost 20 years!" Taffyta cried out. A sneer crept onto the brown haired girl's face.

"If you were my true friend, then you would never have said what you said to me," Candlehead said flatly.

"Are you going to come back or not Candles?" Taffyta questioned. Candlehead huffed and crossed her arms, looking at her reflection in the mirror.

"Why on Earth would I go back to a game with you in it? I might go back to say hi to my REAL friends, but you're dead to me Taffyta, and I never want to see you again!" Candlehead yelled. That was it, there was no more holding it back. Taffyta's eyes began to overflow with salty tears.

"I was wrong to say that to you!" Taffyta cried, "I didn't know how much I needed you, how much I was empty without my best friend!" She cried again, "Candlehead, you're the best friend anyone could ask for, and you have every right to never want to see me again, and I don't deserve to have such a loyal friend like you," Taffyta blubbered, "so if you can find it in your heart to forgive me, I'll be waiting," Taffyta got up and left. However, she failed to notice the tears that were brimming in Candlehead's eyes and that her hand reached out.

_'Don't go,'_ Candlehead whispered almost inaudibly. She blinked some tears away and saw the picture that Taffyta had dropped on the floor. Ever so carefully, she bent down and picked it up. On the back was a little message in pen that read, _'My best friend forever.'_ "I'm sorry too," Candlehead cried and covered her eyes up with her hands and cried in silence.

**End Chapter 5**

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_Doesn't that tug at your heart strings again?_


	6. Sweet Home Sugar Rush

**Candlehead, Come Home! Chapter 6: Sweet Home Sugar Rush**

_This is it, the final chapter of my little short story. Sorry it's so short_

* * *

Her heart sank as she trudged through Game Central Station. Her platinum blonde hair swished over her eyes, hiding the salty tears streaming down her once rosy cheeks. Taffyta's nose sniffled, only cementing the fact that her heart was broken from losing her closest friend. "I don't care what Vanellope does to me," she told herself sadly and wiped her eyes with her gloved hand. This was true, losing her best friend hurt more than anything Vanellope would do to her. If only she had a time machine, then she would go back in time and stop herself from yelling at Candlehead. But, as she entered Sugar Rush, things were a little different.

"Did you find Candlehead?" Jubileena glared.

"What did she say?" Swizzle demanded. Taffyta's ears ignored all the hateful comments and she just sulked her way up to Vanellope whom was still sitting on her kart. The President leapt down and landed on her feet with a soft _thud_ on the ground. Her hazel eyes gazed down to her feet and back up to Taffyta who still refused to look up at the crowd. Vanellope's hand patted Taffyta's shoulder softly.

"Any luck?" She asked with hope. Taffyta wiped her eyes again and looked up. Her normal crystal blue eyes were now red and puffy from her crying; she felt like no more tears could fall.

"W-well, I f-found her," Taffyta choked out. The crowed silenced themselves and leaned in closer to hear the strawberry lollipop racer's explanation of her short journey to find their beloved little ditzy racer. The instant her sentence came to its conclusion, the tension rose, and rose and rose. Taffyta half-expected someone to shout at her, _'GET ON WITH IT!'_ but nobody said a peep.

"And, what did Candlehead say?" Vanellope questioned, just as tense and worrisome as everybody else. Taffyta's head shook from side to side several times before she wiped her eyes again.

"She said that her name is Elana Dech and she doesn't want to be Candlehead anymore," Taffyta said quietly, "and then she said she might come back to visit the game, but she doesn't want to see me anymore!" Taffyta exclaimed and slammed her face onto the wing of Vanellope's kart. The breath was drawn from every racer's lungs; some people didn't want to believe her story, yet some did believe her because Taffyta _never_ liked to show her sad emotions, save for the time Vanellope threatened to execute everyone.

"So, where do we go from here?" Adorabeelze questioned Vanellope. The President breathed out a long continuous sigh before turning to her peers with wet eyes. Her Hazel eyes darting around as if they were searching for an answer as well. But when Vanellope failed to come up with one, everyone else's hearts sank. The only thing Vanellope did was pat Taffyta's back softly again.

"Taffyta, at least you tried," Vanellope tried to fight back her tears and wrapped her arms around Rancis whom was standing behind her. Soon, everybody's eyes began to stream tears down their faces in remembrance of their favorite ditzy racer.

"She did brighten up our day," Crumbelina pointed out.

"She always had a smile on her face," Snowanna cried.

"Hey, what's everybody crying about?" A calm voice asked. The tears ceased flowing and everyone looked towards the entrance of the game to see a young brown haired girl walking towards them. "Didja miss me that much?" Candlehead asked.

"CANDLEHEAD!" Taffyta exclaimed and hugged her best friend, "I'm _so_ sorry!" she cried and hugged Candlehead even harder. The brown haired girl turned slightly blue at not being able to breath, but Taffyta soon released her and she sucked in some air.

"Taffyta said you didn't want to come back!" Vanellope exclaimed, "what made you come back?" she asked. All the other racers silenced themselves and awaited for Candlehead to spin her yarn, which she happily did.

"Well, Taffyta came by Tappers where I got a job waitressing, and at first I didn't want to talk to her, but she pleaded her case and I let her talk. But, I didn't believe a word she said because of how hurt I was and I just wanted to make her leave, but she left a picture of me and her and I realized that I was wrong to make her leave and I missed you guys so much," Candlehead explained.

"Even though you were only gone for 3 hours?" Sticky pointed out. Candlehead nodded and gasped when Taffyta produced her Candlehat and put it on Candlehead's head. The flame ignited and EVERYONE ERUPTED in cheer.

"I'm so glad to have friends like you guys!" Candlehead shouted and hugged everyone.

"This isn't all, Sour Bill, come on out!" Vanellope shouted. Sour Bill appeared holding a minty birthday cake that read, _'Welcome back Candlehead!'_ Candlehead took a bottle of water from Vanellope's kart and dumped it all over her hair, washing out the brown and bringing back the green. She also reached into her eyes and took out the brown contact lenses and stepped on them.

"I'm BACK!" She cheered. Taffyta approached Candlehead and gave her a thumbs up and a wink.

**The End.**

* * *

_Sorry if its short and the ending was anti-climactic, but I think it is a satisfying ending to say the least. AND: I AM SORRY GUEST REVIEWER FOR BEING MEAN TO YOU_


End file.
